As you are all aware, over the past couple of weeks our positive case counts have really spiked. As a result we’ve unfortunately had more classes quarantining which is really stressful for you, your staff, and your families. I would encourage all of you to re-deliver the guidelines and protocols to your families about safe practices and how students should not come to school when feeling ill or if they were possibly exposed. I would also encourage you to review with staff the protocols we need to follow inside and outside our classrooms so when there is a potential exposure we can quickly and efficiently conduct our contact tracing. I know all of you are trying really hard so don’t think I am casting judgment on you. It’s difficult work and we just can’t let our guard down for a second. June is in sight! We’ve got this.
Focus on Excellence and Equity…
Excellence and Equity Meeting Wednesday – We have our next Equity and Excellence PD training this coming Wednesday (4/28) at Cascade. PLEASE NOTE, we need to move the time back to 3:30 start time due to our all-in schedule. Some of the room locations for the meeting have changed. Please go to this link so your elem for your new room assignment..
Bias Awareness Training – Thank you Deon and Kinsey for the Bias Awareness training this week. The goal of the session was to establish a foundational understanding of how bias affects decision-making and explore the impact of explicit and implicit bias in interviewing and hiring. With a specific focus on bringing awareness to and disrupting unconscious bias in the hiring and selection process. Topics covered included:
- Affinity Bias
- Average/Central Bias
- Stereotype Bias
- Conformity Bias, etc.
As a reminder, this was a mandatory training for all administrators. For those of you who missed it, I will send the link to the recorded session as soon as I receive it.
Department News…
From Amy in Instructional Tech – Have you seen this week’s BLS EdTech Bytes Newsletter yet? If not, please check it out and share it with your staff. Our team has complied some great tips, lesson ideas and professional learning opportunities that relevant, useful and engaging!
From Julie in TLC – Just a reminder to read the TLC Update and use any of what’s there in any of your staff newsletters or update
From Melissa Eaton regarding IT orders out of this year’s budget – This year, we are encouraging all 2020-21 orders to be placed by mid-May to maximize the odds of those items arriving by the deadline. This time of year is always busy, so earlier is better for getting your purchase requests in. Because we are still experiencing some COVID-related availability and shipping delays, I’m getting an early start on sending out our annual reminder that our fiscal year ends on June 30. All materials purchased under the current year’s budget must be received by our department by June 30. There is no flexibility in this deadline and our accountants do follow up on dates listed on tracking and delivery. Anything received after June 30 will be returned to the vendor or that money will come out of next year’s budget.
From Dana – Reminder – MAC survey day is Tuesday, April 27th… please make sure your staff is aware.
From Dave Vanloo – Here is the link to Dave’s presentation from Monday’s Horizontal and to the jam board.
Updates, Reminders, Info and Rants…
Self Reflection – Principals, you should have access to your (evaluation) Self-Reflection in Performance Matters. Please plan on having this completed no later than Friday, May 14.
Some info on the Student Success EA’s – Staffing plans have been updated with the correct classified hours for The SSEA’s at your school. The SSEA’s are specifically assigned to support work with your Student Success Clinician/Coordinator. The Student Success Clinician/Coordinator role is part of your schools general education program and they provide tier 2-3 supports to all students. Some schools have 2 EAs, some have 1, and some have 0. We also purposely left a few EAs positions un-assigned because we know things change between now and Sept. 2021 and we want to be able to provide support where needed. This will allow flexibility to respond to the changing needs of our schools and adapt when/if high needs students move into a school unexpectedly. The SSEA’s are a pool of 19 EA’s that are assigned based on need for students that have severe social, emotional and mental health challenges.
Some info on the Student Success Clinician/Coordinator – Some of you may have staff approaching you about this position. Here is a document Sean put together for principal talking points on this position. Each elementary school is getting specific FTE and will hire Student Success Coordinators/Clinicians. The Student Success Coordinator/Clinician, will implement and continuously improve a school-based, tier three intervention program that provides both school-wide and individualized social, emotional, and behavioral support to students. This will involve each school having a space where students can regulate, learn skills, and take breaks so that they can be successful in their classroom environment. The Student Success Coordinator/Clinician and their team provides skill development and support to students struggling with complex, often trauma-induced, behavioral health challenges and assists them with reintegration into the general education setting. In addition to direct services to students, this position will provide school leadership/training to staff in order to build staff capacity in working with students struggling with complex behavioral health challenges. The Student Success Coordinator/Clinician will participate on the building leadership support team and help lead the implementation of school-wide (universal) practices that are trauma-informed and aligned with the district social and emotional instructional framework and common practices. The job description can be found HERE.
Title I Compliance: (Thank you Kelle for this TItle 1A reminder) As you all know, there are certain verification documents required for us to keep each year to stay in compliance and continue to receive federal Title I funds. This is still a requirement for this school year, and we will likely be audited next school year. Joanne has always done a great job of keeping us organized and making it as easy as possible. Here is a link to the folder she created for you to store all of these required documents. Here is a rundown of the items you will need to put in each of these folders:
- Compact – a copy of your school compact for the year
- Annual Principal Verification Form – more information coming
- Parent Involvement Plan – a copy of your school’s parent involvement plan for this year
- Annual Parent Meeting – three required documents:
- Meeting announcement
- Agenda and/or Powerpoint
- Sign-ins and/or evidence of attendance
April/May visits – Look for a sign up for an April/May visit next week. During this visit we will discuss:
- Lexia/Dreambox usage
- Discuss staff observations and evals
- SLGG’s
- Lingering staffing plan questions/situations
Calendar
- 4/23 – Staffing plans due. Skip will review during the week of 4/26
- 4/25 – High Lakes principal posting closes
- 4/26 – Regular Horizontal
- 4/28 – High Lakes principal screening
- 4/28 – 3:30pm @ Cascade: Leadership Team / Excellence & Equity Collaborations
- 5/3 – Horizontal – Kinsey, LEAD video
- 5/5 – High Lakes principal interviews
And Finally…
Props to Michael Hicks at Mountain View HS for sending the following message out to his staff – and sharing (even if he didn’t know he did) with us as an example of a communication that has become way too relevant in this present time… I thought this was a message that may be useful to you even though it is directed to High School teachers and the systems they use:
Staff —
We are seeing an uptick in both students and staff who are entering a quarantine protocol due to a positive COVID result or an exposure to another person with a positive COVID result. Students and parents are understandably upset/nervous/worried about their health AND about missing school. During this time let’s support these students and families the best we can by:
- Letting them know we CARE about their well-being and will support them through this challenging time.
- Continuing to use Canvas to share class agendas, assignments, and resources.
- Coordinating time to check-in with students via WebEx while they are out due to quarantine.
- Limiting or excusing non-essential assignments that may be difficult to complete from home without direct classroom instruction.
- Allowing alternative assignments or assessments.
- Ensuring they know the best way to contact you during this time for support, questions etc.
- Allowing ample time and support once a student returns to get caught up / complete essential work etc.
We have been compassionate, flexible, and supportive all year long. Let’s finish what we started! Please let us know how our admin team and support staff can support each of you with these efforts as we continue to roll with the “COVID rollercoaster.”